Folding toilet seat



March 20, 1951 J. v. BARNES FOLDING TOILET SEAT Filed Oct. 18, 1946 INVENTOR.

JoH/v V AK/vfs 14T TOP/rf Y Patented Mar. 20, 1951 uNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE-f.

'John V. Barnes, La Canada, Calif., assignor, mesne assignments, to Taylor-Phillips, Img,

Los Angeles,alif., a corporation o f `California Application October 18, 1946, Serial Noi-703,325

I 3 Claims.

This invention relates to infants toilet seats. Its general object is to provide a foldable, portable toilet seat that may be quickly attached to `a full-sized toilet seat. l v i Y A specific object of the invention is to provide a toilet seat adaptedv to be folded into a compact package. f

Another Objectis to provide Va foldable toilet seat having means for attachingthe seat to a full-sized toilet seat, said attaching means being foldable within the seat.

Another object is to provide a back rest for supporting an infant on the seat, which b ack rest is foldable or collapsible against thes'e'at .when the seat is folded, and .is provided `with simple means for supporting it .in its. extended" posi# tion.

Another object of the invention is to provide a foldable toilet seat having a hinged pubic section adaptedl to be raised above the plane of the seat for use, and to be `folded within the plane of the seat when theseat is not in use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a foldable seat which may be fairly simply constructed of cast metal or molded plastic mateembodying my invention, a portion thereof being s broken away to better illustrate-the construction;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal, vertical, sectional view through the toilet seat shown attached to a fullsized toilet seat, taken as indicated by the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a view, partially in section and partially in elevation, of the toilet seat in its folded condition.

As an example of one form in which the invention may be embodied, I have shown in the drawings a toilet seat embodying a front section 4 and a rear section 5 hinged together by.; double hinges each including a bar 6 and a. pair of pins 1 and 8 passing through the respective ends of the bar 6 and through bosses 9 and "III-1 formed in the respective sections. Each of the seat sections 4 and 5 includes an arched wall Il and a series of transverse strengthening webs I2,- I3, and I4 respectively, the webs I4 constituting end walls which, when the seat is openedr` up, abut each other so as to rigdfy the seatstructure under the weight of a child seated thereon. The bars 6 are received in slots I5 in the bosses 9 D 2 f :f and I0 and are adapted to bottom against thickened wall portions I6 which define thez'u'p'pei. extremities of the slots I5 in" the position ofluse The engagement of the thickened wallportio'ns' I6 against the bars 6 assists in` rigidifying th'e -s'eat in its extended position. ..1 i.

Formed integrallyfwith theweb 'I2fof the rear section is a lug I1 in which is pivotedthetrun nion portion I8 of an attachment hookIQLThe hook I9'includes anend finger 20 which is Jada-pted to yieldingly vbear vagainst thev lower '.'surface 2| of a full-size toilet seat, 22 with sufficient pressure tose'eurely hold the infants. seat-iii position thereon,lwiththe aidof the .positioning pins 43 which vare `moldeda's" Jan')iir'it'egra'l` part l of the webs I3. Thegrip'of the hook T'I.9 is s proved by the employment of a rubber sleeve 23 which is slipped over the hook y'I9'. -The hook I9 `is S-shaped, including areversely hookedpor tion 24 which terminates inthe trunnion I8; In its operative position showny in Fig. 2, it projects downwardly in a'vertical plane. Itis adapted to be folded upwardly to an inoperative position shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and in such position is disposed in a horizontal plane and-received within the seat section 5, as indicated in Fig. 3.y

I provide an arcuate back rest 25, each arm' of which has at its'end a finger 26 that extends at an obtuse angle to the body of the Tback rest.L Each finger 26 has an elongated slot 21 through which extends a pin 28 mountedin theboss 9i In the elevatedposition of theback restfshown' in Fig. 2, each nger 26 has its end portion "received in a socket `29 in the boss 9. The pin 28 is so disposed that, in this position of the back rest, the nger 26 hasfits end-portion projecting. substantially below the pin 28, and thus the fingers 26 are braced between the pins 28 and the sides of the sockets 29 so as to rigidly support the back rest in its raised position.

The upper portions of the socket 29 are ared upwardly and rearwardly on their rear sides to provide spaces 3U which permit the fingers 26 to be tilted rearwardly, allowing the backrest to be folded against the upper surface of the seat section 5 as shown in Fig. 3. The lower ends of the fingers 26 are curved as at 3I concentric to the lower ends of the slots 21, so as to allow the back rest to be pivoted around the pins 28 when the fingers 26 have been drawn upwardly to bring the lower extremities of the slots 21 against the pins 28.

A belt 4I (comprising two belt sections each attached at one end to the back rest and connectible together at their other ends by a buckle 42) is adapted to be secured around the body of an infant to hold it against falling.

It is to be noted that the hinge mechanism is completely covered by the toilet seat sections in their extended positions, the wall portions I9 coming together at the hinge line to cooperatively form a substantially continuous upper seating surface.

The seat sections are of molded or cast material. A preferred material is a molded synthetic resin or plastic material of a type which can be given a highly polished surface in the molding operation and which also lends itself to being colored in various colors. The'secti'ons are made in the form of hollow shells order 1to1-avoid 1unl' due weight, and are braced by fthe transverse 'web members I2, I3, I4 in orderto .have adequate strength. The use of the hollow shell construction also provides for accommodating the attaching hook I9 in its folded position.

@.A'pubicsection '32 is .hinged lat 33 fto the' inner margin Aof theforward seat section 4, for movement n\lo=.-tweeri an operative position, shown in Figa .in which4 it 4extends 'upwardly above the seat, tol a'ifo'lded position, .shown .in Fig. 3, in which it lies within the confines of' the seat, i. e., between the planesl of the upper and lewe-rextremities thereof.

.-1. .1n #an -.in'fantstoiletV seat, an annular sea-t member eomprising Aan upwardly arched, downwardiy opening'lshell--vproviding va convex upper seatingsurface, l and an'attachment hook hinged beneath: such shell 'substantially :on :the 4major axis thereoflfor swinging movement from' a-,positionl projecting `downwardly iin a substantially vertical; vlongitudinal plane, fin which position it isfadapted to fen'gage'beneath the rear 'portion of afnll-sizedftoilet `sea-t, -to a folded'position lying in substantially ia'horizontal :plane entirely within the :confines of said shell.

l lIn affo-ldingf-infants toilet seat, fa-.pa-i-r of seat-'sections -hing-ed- -together- Von a Y transverse axisffor `folding movementf-rom extendedv pos-itions whichf theyfcooperate 'to deli-ne an annular seat"to`folded positions inwhich their under surfaces *are broughtv together, an 'arcuate back rest having `end' portions hinged to the rear section forvfolding movement from a raised gpositioniin which it may function :as a bach support to 1a-folded 'position .lying closely adiacent the upper:surface-of the rear section, 'a pubic section hingedto Ithe inner periphery of the 4forward section -ior 'movement from 'anoperat-ive position .in which-.itprojectsfupwardlyf above the planeof the seat-to afoldedpositionin which it is accommodated within the connes of said forward section, and an attaching member comprising a hook pivoted to the under side of the rear section on substantially the major axis of the seat for folding movement from a position lying in a vertical plane and projecting downwardly to engage beneath the underside of the rear portion of the `full-sized toiletl seat to afolded'position lying. in Ia horizon-tal plane withinfthe .connes of the rear seat section, said rear seat section having a downwardly opening cavity to receive said attaching member.

' 3.1m a folding infants toilet seat, a pair of seat sections hingedfftogether for movement to foldedY'posi-tions in which their under surfaces are brought -togeti'ienran arcuate back rest having 'endfportions disposed at an obtuse angle relative to the general plane thereof, the rear seat seetionhaving, adjacent its hinged connection to the other section, a pair of sockets having rectangular'lowerfportionsland .flared upper portions, `said lower portions being disposed Aat right angles tothe general .plane of the rear `seat section, said back rest end portionshavingelongatedl slot'sfand hinge pins mounted in said rear seatsection, traversing saidsockets Sand extending through said slots, whereby saidback res-t maybe `shifted'.fro'mna Iposition -in which. it lies 'iatlyagains-t the upper face=of said rear seat section 'with said fend portions thereof .accommodated in said flared socket-portions, to afraised position in which said end portions are aligned withfsaid rectangular socket portions and .may thereupon beshifted .longitudinally 'intofsaid longitudinal `socket Yportions andY become locked therein so as to support said backrest in v`sai-d raised position.

' JOHN V. BARNES.

" REFERENCES ECITED `The following references `are fof-record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 'Name Date 22,297 Lytle et al Dec. 14, 1858 184,606 Foster Nov. 21, :1876 .1,156,629 Rivera Oct. .12, 1915 1,267,590 Ream i". .May28, 1918 1,555,526 Smith Sept, 29, 1925 2,133,416 vBentz Oct. 18, 1938 t 'FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date '23,969 Great Britain Nov. 2, .19.11 

